JimBee

I'm still here, and I didn't mess with the tanker or commit a murder, I assure you. What a shame that this lovely young lady was killed... Though I still believe that herself and Miss Thornton were the same person. Here's a theory- Jennifer was being held captive during the time that "Elizabeth Thornton" sent out letters to all of us passengers, which were actually pleas of help. Jennifer knew that the train would be passing through Willoughby, and I think that she somehow sabotaged the train so that it would stop in Willoughby so that we could rescue her. She could have an accomplice on-board that sabotaged the train (so that us passengers could help save Jennifer/ Elizabeth). It is also obvious that she knew that we were coming from the various "X" clues around town. Assuming that someone purposely stopped the train, that leaves a few possibilities. Brakes, Max, and Steve all visited the tender/ engine at some point supposedly to check on the train's functionality. But there was also a passenger who wanted to visit the tender/ engine. My memory is not that great, but wasn't it Bulldog? I'm not blaming anyone here, but I think that this could be the story. Unfortunately, as noble as stopping the train to save a life was, it appears that we are too late. So, could any of the town residents tell us train passengers why you were holding Jennifer captive in the first place? There is also reason to believe that one of you murdered her, not long ago. Oh, and I'd like to see if I can pull out that metal thing in the semi, taking a rock or the cap, or even my hand to stop the gas from flowing out. Can we try the switch combo soon?

I'm glad to hear this approved! Unfortunately, though, I don't I'll be able to play. I'm going to be really busy this summer, and I've lost an interest in these kind of long-term games. After running one for over a year, you might see what I mean. I'm really sorry, but I am going to have to resign. Good luck though, to JD and all of the players to a fun game.

I see the top of my big head! Thanks very much for including me, especially at last minute, Stash2Sixx. Any chance of seeing me in your MOCs?

Congrats to all. I really enjoyed this competition, and it's the highest I've ever scored in one here.

Hey everyone, I'm back. Apparently the game isn't over yet, so is there any chance of me joining in again? If there isn't, that's okay, I'll just sit back and watch for the rest of the game. Now, to read up on what I missed...

Thanks, Striker. Don't worry, TheBrickster's got it all covered. I'm sure you'll see soon enough. Aw, I'm so sorry, Schmelt. I'll remember you always! *Punches shoulder* Behave yourself! Thanks, I will.

I also agree that Adventures/ Orient Expedition should be placed in the History forum. It has more history themes to it than action subjects. I want war and apocalyptic MOCs to be kept in Other Themes, but it would make more sense for war MOCs to be in action. On another note, regarding apocalyptic MOCs, I think that they should remain in Other Themes. Considering that this category includes past, present, and future, there is nothing really Sci-Fi about them, depending on the perspective. There could be robots and/ or aliens, but in my mind, the apocalypse is humans with limited technology fighting zombies. It's really great to hear that us members can make such a difference. This is what I like to see from the staff.

Hello fellow players, I just wanted to say that I unfortunately will no longer be able to play this wonderful game. I will be away camping for the next two weeks, and I won't have access to the internet. I've already worked out the details with TheBrickster. Sorry. I look forward to the ending when I return, though.

Have fun, all attendees! And thanks Stash2Sixx for including my sig-fig at last minute.

Am I the only one not excited by this change? I know the staff has worked hard on these movements, and I don't mean to be rude, but wasn't it fine the way it was? The change to Sci-Fi was a great idea, but splitting up the History and Adventure form makes it kind of confusing. I'm sure I'll get used to it sooner or later, but I think that the themes were fine how they were. Power Miners was the only theme that didn't fit in with a forum, but I thought it was fine in Other Themes. Again, I mean no offense to the staff who has worked so hard on this, these are just my personal views that I wanted to express. That's going to drive me crazy.

Aw, sorry I'm late. Happy Birthday to the three (six) of you. I hope you got lots of Lego.

Good point. I was thinking the same thing. While most AFOLs disliked KKII, I can't actually say that the line didn't sell. I would edit that out, but it's probably bad form to change an already published article. All I can say is that I was wrong here. No, I don't have an article, but I'm almost certain that TLG stated that they had help from AFOLs with the 2007 line.

After searching multiple times and even asking other members, I found that there is no flesh vs. yellow minifig topic. () I know this subject has been debated many times before, but there was never really a straightforward poll here. So, you can vote on one of three choices: Yellow: You prefer your minifigs to be yellow. Flesh: You prefer flesh colored minifigures. This category includes all shades of flesh: light flesh (seen on most flesh minifigs), dark flesh (Mace Windu, for example), medium flesh (example, thanks to Svelte Corps), and earth-orange (example, thanks to Svelte again). No preference: You don't like either more than the other. I voted for flesh, because I think that they offer a more realistic approach than yellow figures, and the overall look is "clean". Flesh minifigures also go better with some accessories, such as blond hair. To the staff: If there was any other topic like this, this topic can be merged or closed.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I enjoyed writing this as much as you enjoyed reading it. Thanks, and yes, Space is an evergreen theme. This includes Life on Mars, Mars Mission, Space Police, Classic Space, etc. Thanks for the tip about the shields- I'll do some research on that. However, I did say a bit about both of those sub-themes, if you take a closer look. Or did you mean that I should have said more? Thank you, I had quite a few surprises myself when researching. I didn't even know that Dark Forest existed! Thanks. I still think it's the best, but maybe that's just because it's the newest, and it came after KKII. I haven't decided on which of the three remaining themes do review next, but the next article won't be for a while.

We all know the Lego “evergreen” themes- the most popular themes that Lego created (Castle, Pirates, City, and Space), but what of them? What makes them evergreen themes? This article will explore all four in depth, to just take a look back through the years and remember why these themes are so popular. I now present you with my first section. Castle I chose to review the Castle theme first, because it is the one that I am most familiar with. Be aware, however, that this section does NOT include unrelated sub-themes such as Harry Potter, Belville, or Duplo. The Castle theme has been around since 1978- a very long time compared not only to other, shorter themes, but also to the existence of Lego itself. Many of you will remember the famous Yellow Castle, the first Castle set ever. It featured a simple and classic design- the yellow walls and brick-built horses still remain in many of the minds of our Adult Fans of Lego as a fond childhood memory. Indeed, this was the first stepping-stone for a theme that would soon prove to be a favorite among Lego builders of all ages. 315 Yellow Castle, the first Castle set. The Yellow Castle started it all- before long; Castle was off the ground. In the years 1978 through 1983, there were a few Classic Castle sets, but in 1984, new sub-themes started to appear. Lion Knights and Black Falcons were the first. The set designs were slightly varied and improved from the classic line. New figures and pieces were introduced, such as the horse. A Black Falcon minifigure. Both Black Falcons and Lion Knights continued on through the years. During this time, only a few sets (no more than ten) were released per year, and the majority of the sets were small in size. More sub-themes were introduced. Forestmen, a well-known and loved theme, was created in 1988, over 20 years ago. 6066 Camouflaged Outpost- one of two of the first Forestmen sets. The Forestmen sub-theme took Castle by a different approach, more domestic, one could say. The epic, medieval, royal vibe from previous Castle themes was replaced by a quieter, secretive sort of feel. Instead of reenacting massive battles, children could now play out a Robin Hood-esque story, with smuggling, hiding, and that sort of thing. Forestmen also provided somewhat larger sets in general. Even more sub-themes were making entrances to the Lego Castle world. Black Knights and Crusaders were first released in the year of 1990. They were very much similar to Black Falcons and Lion Knights (now near extinction), except for perhaps different minifigs and new set ideas. 6057 Sea Serpent, an interesting set with the new idea of watercraft in Castle from the Black Knights theme. These recent sub-themes did not have much to add to the ever-growing Castle theme, but another sub-theme made its grand entrance in 1992, Wolfpack. While it only included three sets, Wolfpack stood out because it combined the “secretive” vibe of Forestmen with the classic vibe of the original Castle theme with a bit of paranormal reference. 6075 Wolfpack Tower- how eerie! Before long, though, Wolfpack was gone and new sub-themes were making their way into Castle. Dragon Knights was first released in 1993, and though at first glance it might just seem like another Castle sub-theme, it actually introduced a different perspective of Castle. The inclusion of dragons, wizards, and other ideas of the sort reflect the fantasy theme that we see today. 6082 Fire Breathing Fortress introduced new fantasy elements, as well as that massive baseplate that we don’t see much of. What happens after that? Yes, you guessed it, more sub-themes. Royal Knights (1995) replaced the previous classic sub-theme, just as those sub-themes did to their predecessors, and so on. Royal Knights didn’t have many new ideas to add, it was simply continuing on the heritage of regular, classic Castle. 6044 King’s Carriage- look familiar? Those shiny chrome parts must have been exciting when they first came out, because they still are! Dark Forest was another sub-theme (1996), mimicking the elements of Forestmen. I think that this is one of the lesser-known sub-themes of Castle, perhaps because of its many similarities with Forestmen. 6024 Bandit Ambush- is there much of a difference between this and a Forestmen set? Fright Knights was next in line for the sub-themes of Castle. This time, Castle took on a new, darker approach, with dragons, witchcraft, and of course, the “fright”. Many of these sets were promotion polybags, at stores such as Shell or Woolworths. Personally, when these came out, I thought they seemed kind of lonely. I passed on these as a child. That's not to say that these were bad sets, though. 6007 Bat Lord- just look at that gloomy background… 1998 introduced Ninjas. This was one of my favorite sub-themes of Castle. Even though I never got any Ninja sets, I still remember playing with them at a relative’s house. This line featured Asian culture- a nice change-up from the classic lines that kids and adults alike would love. New types of weapons, minifigures, and sets were prominent here. 6045 Ninja Surprise featured new flying technology in the Castle world. 1998 also provided old themes such as Dragon Knights and Crusaders to make another appearance, this time with Kabaya sweets in Japan. The sets were repeats of a few small “impulse” sets from previous years. Ninjas continued it’s second and final year in 1999, and in 2000, Knights Kingdom I started. This sub-theme wasn’t all too different from other classic sub-themes, but supposedly the minifigures were more “characterized”. There weren’t just generic soldiers anymore- there were named knights that each made several appearances in various sets. An interesting marketing strategy was also made possible by this sub-theme. In the sets 4816, 4817, 4818, and 4819, a different chrome part was included with each set. If the buyer collected all four sets, they would be able to combine the chrome sword, shield, armor, and helmet to create a chrome knight. I say that this strategy is interesting because it hadn’t really been used before in Lego Castle. An image of the chrome knight when all four chrome pieces are assembled onto one minifig. (Thanks to WhiteFang for the image). The following years (2001-2002) provided for more remakes of old sets with the new Legends theme. In 2004, Knights Kingdom was reincarnated with KKII. This line featured two types of sets: Bionicle-like action figures and normal System-scale sets. Most unlike other Castle sub-themes, this line had defined characters with very few generic minifigures. 8771 Jayko- obviously, these did not sell well. I remember getting this one, and destroying it almost immediately. 8779 Knight’s Castle Wall Ultimately, KKII was a failure. Some children might have liked it, but some AFOL’s refer to the line as “Castle Superheroes”, and that's not a compliment. KKII continued on through 2006 with more action figures and System sets each year. Perhaps the line was improving with sets such as these: 10176 Royal King’s Castle Finally, in 2007, the line we see today started. This fantasy-era sub-theme was a large improvement over KKII, with better sets, ideas, new pieces, and new minifigures. The Lego Group worked with Lego MOCers to come up with these sets. The attempt was most successful, I would think. 7036 Dwarves Mine- a whole new take on Castle. The Fantasy sub-theme features mythical beings such as living skeletons, trolls, orcs, dwarves, and dragons. Of course, the race of men was included as well. With a wide variety of sets to choose from, Castle is now better than ever. 10193 Medieval Market Village- just released this year, this set takes on a more domestic approach with detailed houses and market stalls rather than battle devices. So now we are in the present, 2009, with Lego Castle continuing to grow and provide new sets and ideas. In fact, Lego Castle has barely stopped through these 30 plus years. So why does it continue? Why is it considered an evergreen theme? The answer is simple- Castle and medieval themes appeal to children and adults alike. Whether it be enacting massive battles, building huge castles and towers, or MOCing your own Castle creations, Castle has something for everybody. ------------------------------------- So, that was my article. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it. Please feel free to participate in the poll above and leave any comments, questions or concerns you have.

Not me. No sir, I hate flying, especially with crazy chefs (no offense, Schmelt).

I understand. Well, there are plenty of heads out there, I just thought the Luke head looked simpler (much more simple?) and better. I meant only on the shoulders, but I guess you would be right. It's hard to tell from a picture. Great idea- the plain white would suit your sig-fig well. :laugh:

Why don't they just make every piece chrome? There could be different colors of chrome for variety, and the shine would make everyone buy Lego! Lego of the future!

Okay, I'm just going to ignore my instincts and take a quick peek in the cockpit. I'd like to look under the chairs, look at the dashboard, the controls, on the floor, etc.

Hm, I think I liked the old one better. While the decals are nice, I think your sig-fig could do without the arm decals (replaced with dark blue arms). They just make the whole thing a little complicated, and the edges of the paper are sticking out because of the round surface of the arm. Other than that little gripe, I think it looks good. I liked the generic Luke head a bit better, I suppose, but the shades are pretty cool. Then again, it's your sig-fig, so you decide what it should look like based on your personal opinion.

No mail? Hm... Alright, let's go, but I am not putting a toe on that plane. Then can we go to the switch tower?

I'll be back. Nice work on this, and I like how far you've gone to include all of the little bits and bobs (my favorite being the shotgun!).

According to Brickset, 171, though I have tons of miscellaneous minifigs from old sets, trades with friends, Bricklink, etc. and a large Ziploc bag full of various minifig parts and accessories. I'd guess about 250- 300 total.

Hmm... the blue man group? Your high school band? Can't wait for pictures once you get back. Prepare to be invaded.

But you never said anything about this area- which makes me wonder if you were trying to keep it secret from us train passengers. That and the fact that you never denied it- you just seemed to ignore what he said. Not to mention that you're suspect #1 for throwing a meat cleaver into Max's chest. Who else would have a meat cleaver besides a chef? Eleanor must have had the same thoughts when she was about to shoot you. I don't blame her. Well, wouldn't you know...? You do work here, so you should know who was here and what was sent, right? See? You did it again. When I asked you about the mail, it would have been nice to know that you had some in your truck. In fact, you never even mentioned your truck, either.